Fade Into You
by k.j. darkly
Summary: When Scarlett catches Avery kissing Marilyn she decides to drown her sorrows in whiskey; that is until Gunner shows up. *rated M for a few cuss words and there might be some steaminess down the road*
1. Chapter 1

A/N: this is my first Nashville Fanfic. I have written a few other stories for another show but recently I have been into Nashville and I really love the Scarlett Gunnar relationship. I think they would be so adorable as a couple. Anyways im going to stop my rambling now... I don't own Nashville or anything associated with it... ENJOY!

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**Fade Into You**

Chapter 1 : Beautiful Mess

"why would Avery do that to me?" Scarlett O'Conner's body swayed as she tried to stabilize herself against the wall. Bringing the bottle of dark liquor to her lips she scoured as she took a swig.

Gunnar Scott walked toward her shaking his head in disapproval. " what are you doing? Scarlett, you never drink like this". He took the bottle from her and proceeded to pour it down the kitchen drain. He turned around to find Scarlett slumped at the base of the door frame leading into a disheveled living room. It wasn't unusual for Gunnar to be around drunk people, after all he did work at the Blue Bird Cafe; and open mic night was notorious for drunken girls trying to make a name for themselves; however Scarlett had only had a few beers in all the time that he had known her.

" He never loved me did he?" Scarlett mumbled.

"Come on lets get you up" he held out his hands in order for Scarlett to pull herself up. Brushing her long white curls from her face he lead her toward the couch.

"Am I that pathetic, so blind that I wasn't able to see him the way everyone else did? I knew Deacon didn't like him but I just thought that was Deacon being well... Deacon. I mean and that woman he was with _Marilyn Rhodes" _(even her name left a foul taste in her mouth).

She plopped down on the couch like a flabby piece of bacon spreading her arms out.

" I never did like him" Gunnar mumbled under his breath as he attempted to get Scarlett's boots off her feet.

"who asked you, and why are you even here?" She was now back on her feet pacing drunkenly around the room. Gunnar stared at her in utter disbelief.

" If you weren't so wasted, you would probably remember you called me, leaving a message for me to come here... on my phone, excuse me for giving a shit about you Scarlett! I thought maybe you could use a friend right now."

" I never asked you to give a shit about me!" Scarlett poked her finger into Gunnar's chest, slurring her words a bit.

"Fine, I'll leave you to your own devices" he took a step backwards which lead Scarlett to lose her footing, she was on the verge of falling backwards when he scooped one arm behind her back pulling her body towards his.

"whoa" she breathed, her doe-eyes gleamed up at him. She realized that her body was nestled so close to his that she could feel his heart pounding in his chest. In that moment she couldn't deny that she felt something between them. Something almost electric. She wondered if it was all the whiskey she had drank or if he felt it to, that strange pull. He looked down at her, his hazel eyes giving off the same intense stare.

Just then the room started spinning. Scarlett cupped her hand to her mouth as she darted for the bathroom. Gunnar followed the heaving sound coming from down the hall. He slowly cracked open the door. "go away" Scarlett cried between heavy breaths and heaving.

"Now what kind of friend would I be if I did that?" he sat down on the side of the tub, slowly pulling her long curls out of vomits way.

"i don't want you to see me like this" the sound echoed in the toilet bowl.

"like I haven't seen worse at the Blue Bird" he reminded as he gently rubbed her back.

After a few more minutes of gut wrenching Scarlett pulled herself up off the floor before rinsing her mouth out in the sink.

"I hate to be the one to tell you this, but you stink" the dark haired boy said as he stood behind her staring at their reflection in the mirror.

"I probably should take a shower"

Gunnar nodded and shut the bathroom door behind him. He tidied up the rest of the house while he waited for Scarlett to finish her shower. After a few minutes he made himself comfortable in one of the living room chairs and started slowly strumming on his guitar strings. He was lost in a melody when he heard the bathroom door open. Gunnar looked up to see a now clean and freshly smelling Scarlett standing in the doorway her hair braided to the side, with a light purple, satin bathrobe on; her skin was still a little wet and the material clung to her curves in just the right way.

He had never seen her like this before, and he knew he must have been staring when Scarlett asked "what's wrong".

"um... can you go put on something less revealing" he could feel his cheeks flush.

"oh my gosh, I am so sorry Gunnar. I don't know what I was thinking. I usually don't have anyone over here except Avery" She looked at the ground when she said his name embarrassed by how little she was wearing in front of one of her good friends and the fact that it still hurt to think about her cheating ex.

"I'll be right back"

A few moments later she appeared again, this time she had on a pair of boxer shorts, a camisole with her chunky white cardigan over top and her UGG boots on.

"would you like some coffee?"

He looked up at her giving her a shy grin "yeah that would be nice. Do you want my help?"

"no you stay here and continue working"

Gunnar leaned back against the chair. How had he not seen this before? He had obviously noticed how good looking Scarlett was but this, this was something different something deeper. He couldn't even remember the last girl he felt this way about. However, they were friends, and business partners; so nothing could happen between them.

"Here you go" Scarlett handed him a cup of steaming hot coffee

"thanks"

"So, what are you working on?"

"Oh It's just a little something; I was hoping we could sing it at the Blue Bird this weekend"

"well let's hear it"

he picked up his guitar with one hand and the lyrics over to Scarlett with the other.

"oh, I'm really not in the mood to sing right now. Why don't you sing it and ill lay here on the couch and listen?" The petite blonde asked. Gunnar nodded grabbing the lyrics back and began to play softly.

As Scarlett laid on the couch she closed her eyes, basking in the sweet sound of his voice. It almost made her forget coming home and catching Avery kissing another woman. She took in a deep breath, clearing her head of all the bad "juju" that went along with Avery Barkley. She continued to concentrate on Gunnar's voice until she nodded off to sleep.

looking over he noticed Scarlett's light breathing and realizing that she had fallen asleep he quietly put his guitar away before getting up and covering her with a blanket.

"goodnight" he whispered placing a chaste kiss on her forehead "I'll see you in the morning".

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So what do you think? Any and all feedback is greatly appreciated. Also let me know if you want me to continue, I usually don't write Nashville fanfic so this is something new I wanted to try. If you like this and want to read some of my other stories (Degrassi is what I usually write about)go check them out. Thanks again for reading

much love -Kj


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks everyone who read the first chapter, I really appreciate all the support! I Really want to thank beckPo and the guest that commented on my story. Your feedback is really what keeps me motivated it also gives me a sense of what y'all think (if it sucks I want to know... that way I can do what I need to improve it for y'all) anyways I digress... here is chapter 2. ENJOY!

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**Ch. 2 I should have kissed you...**

Scarlett was abruptly woken up by the sound of someone knocking on the door. Throwing the blanket to the side she rushed to the door and looked through the peep hole. What is Gunnar doing here, she thought to herself as she slowly turned the lock to let him in.

"Good morning sunshine, how's your head feeling?" he handed here a cup of coffee and a white paper bag.

"what's this?"

"a cure for your hangover" he smiled. Scarlett opened the bag and noticed a delicious looking blueberry muffin.

"thanks" she said taking a seat at the kitchen table. Gunnar joined her at the table.

"oh yeah, one more thing" he handed her a bottle of aspirin

"When did you become so sweet?" she started picking at the muffin

"when you weren't looking" he laughed flashing her a timid smile. " hurry up, times a wasting and we got places to be lil' lady"

"what time did you leave last night?"

"after you feel asleep, you know for such a tiny little thing you sure do snore loudly"

"i do not" she huffed " so where are we going?"

"you'll see when we get there, just go get dressed"

Scarlett nodded getting up from the table. As she walked toward her room she glanced back at the dark haired boy sitting at the table. She couldn't help but notice how good he looked that morning, and she wondered if he always looked that good or if she was still a little drunk from the night before. She quietly watched as Gunnar got up and cleared the table, her eyes narrowing in on how well he fit into the seat of his jeans.

"what am I doing?" she whispered to herself before walking into her room. She threw open her closet and pillaged for something to wear. After what seemed like forever she finally settled on a white oversized tee-shirt with lace trim and a knee length floral skirt. She pulled her hair out of the braid it was in letting her curls spring to life before throwing on a little mascara and lip gloss.

"Ready to go?" she asked as she slipped on her weathered cowboy boots.

"wow" Gunnar stammered seeing how beautiful she looked.

"wow what?" she blushed

"you just look real pretty is all" his voice timid and shy.

"stop it" she playfully slapped his arm sending electric currents throughout his entire body. He looked down at his arm where she touched him, did she feel that too? Why was he feeling this way? Sure he had thought that Scarlett was cute before last night but he had always known that she was with Avery and he respected that. Now that Avery was out of the picture all of these strange new feeling were coming to the surface and all he wanted to do was kiss her.

"Gunner are you okay?" she asked bringing him out of his little day dream.

"yeah, let's go" The two of them stepped out onto the front porch.

"where is your car?"

"I thought since it was nice day and seeing as we aren't going very far we could walk." without asking he reached down and grabbed her hand as they headed down the sidewalk.

"where are you taking me to?" she giggled as he half ran down the street holding her hand.

"you really don't have any patience do you?"

"i have plenty of patience, it's just that I don't really care for surprises. It runs in the family Deacon hates surprises"

"well I promise you, this one you'll like"

a few moments later they turned a corner and Scarlett smiled from ear to ear. "a street fair?"

"yeah what's better than greasy fried food and some dancing?"

The two of them wandered around checking out all of the booths and vendors, stopping to try on some strange hats and goofy sunglasses.

"what about these" Gunnar asked turning around displaying a pair of pink horn rimmed sunglasses that looked atrocious. Scarlett couldn't help but laugh at him. She stopped laughing abruptly and pulled Gunnar's body in front of hers, tucking her arms and head into his chest.

"Scarlett what are you doing?"

"Is he gone?"

"Is who gone?"

"Avery? He's here with Marilyn" she cowered. Gunnar looked around but didn't see Avery anywhere.

"i don't see him anywhere"

"whew" Scarlett pulled away from the warmth of Gunnar's chest. "Thanks" she smiled and started walking toward the next booth.

"Scarlett, are you ashamed to be seen with me?" The dark haired boy asked, his eyes starting to glass over. Scarlett turned around and looked deep into his eyes, seeing the hurt that she didn't mean to cause.

"Oh gosh no" she said placing her hand on his cheek "I'm just not ready to confront him. I'm humiliated after catching him last night with _her_." Scarlett slowly reached down and grabbed his hand as they started walking again. Neither one of them said a word for a while they just enjoyed the silence.

"I'm bout starved, what you say we grab a bite to eat?" he said a few minutes later glancing down at the cute blonde

"yeah" she nodded "i could eat".

"two jumbo corn dogs, a root beer and a lemonade" Gunnar said to the young girl working in the food truck.

"that will be $7.50"

"keep the change" Gunnar handed her a ten dollar bill. The girl smiled sweetly handing him the food through the window.

Scarlett and gunner found a nearby picnic table where the sat down.

"Gunnar, thank you" she smiled warmly at him from across the table.

"for what?"

"this, getting me out of the house. Getting my mind off Avery and for just being so perfect."

"i'd hardly consider myself perfect"

"no, just listen to me, last night you dropped everything you were doing to come and take care of me. I was trying to drink my pain away and when that backfired you were there to hold my hair and that... that means a lot to me."

he could feel his face turn beat red. Before he could respond a band approached the stage.

"hey y'all we are gonna play you a few songs before the real talent comes on" the lead singer said as the microphone echoed. The sun was starting to set as the music began to play.

"oh I love this song" Scarlett squealed as she jumped up grabbing Gunnar's hand. "Dance with me, Please!" she begged. Before she could blink he swept her off her feet and onto the dance floor. They we're laughing and smiling as he twirled her around the floor. In that moment he couldn't help but think that she was the most beautiful creature he had ever laid eyes on. When the music finally stopped they both clapped, laughing at the fact that they were both out of breath.

"thanks y'all for a great night you have been a wonderful crowd and now, Avery Barkley" the lead singer stepped away from the microphone.

"thank you. How's everyone doing tonight? My name is Avery Barkley and I'm going to play you a few songs"

Both Scarlett and Gunner stood there in shock.

"We can go if you want" he said

"NO, I'm not going to let him ruin my night" Scarlett scowled

"Before I play my next song I want to dedicate it to a very special person. My girlfriend Scarlett O'Connor" He said pointing out Scarlett in the crowd. "I'm so sorry, I love you, please forgive me" Avery bellowed into the microphone. Everyone turned to see Scarlett standing there, her face flushed red.

"let's go" she said grabbing gunners arm, pulling him off the dance floor.

"are you okay?" Gunnar asked as the two of them walked down the sidewalk toward her street.

" He has some nerve! Why would he do that to me?" she was so mad she hardly realized that she was shivering.

"Scarlett you are shivering"

"I'm just a little cold is all, I'll be fine"

"here" he said wrapping his arm over her shoulder and pulling her body into his as they continued walking.

"i just don't understand Avery anymore, I guess I never have" she whispered, trying to fight back tears.

"Truth be told, other than heartbreak and drunken sex, I'm not 100% sure what you see in him"

"he wasn't always like this, when I followed him here he was sweet and loving and actually cared about me"

they reached Scarlett's front porch, sticking the key in the lock she opened her front door.

"well, thanks for today" she said meekly looking up at him.

"are you sure you'll be alright alone?"

"I'll be fine. It will do me some good to be alone" It had been a rough couple of days and all Scarlett could think about was a hot bubble bath and a warm bed.

"well I guess Goodnight then" he looked down into her big blue eyes. Scarlett didn't understand why she was so caught off guard by the intensity of his stare. She knew the look he was giving her, he wanted to kiss her and she was almost tempted not to stop him if he tried. She felt a tingling sensation running through her body when his hands met the wall on both sides of her head. Scarlett closed her eyes and waited a moment, he was going to kiss her... wasn't he?

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Hope y'all are enjoying the story so far... much love -Kj!


	3. Ch 3: When the right one comes along

Hey everyone I am truly sorry that I haven't written in a while. I have just been so busy. I hope you haven't forgotten about my story. Anyways here is chapter 3 hope you enjoy it.

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Ch. 3 : When the Right One Comes Along

Gunnar smirked at the sight of Scarlett's closed eyes and puckered lips. Gently he bent forward placing a tender kiss on her forehead.

"Goodnight Scarlett" he whispered in her ear sending chills throughout her body.

She quickly opened her eyes to see the silhouette of the man she was starting to fall in love with descend down her walkway. Gently she placed her hands to her cheeks realizing she was burning up. It had been a very long time since she had felt feelings so intense. For the past couple of months she had felt numb inside always trying to walk on eggshells around Avery and now, now she somehow felt free.

She walking into her house and slowly locked the door behind her. She was starting to wish she had invited Gunnar in for a beer, but ultimately knew that it was for the best that she hadn't. There was no point in rushing into anything.

She hadn't been soaking in the tub for more than ten minutes when she heard a loud bang at the door. She quickly climbed out of the tub, wrapping herself in her robe before walking toward the front door.

"Who is it?" she called

"Avery" the voice on the other side of the door replied.

"What do you want?"

"I need to talk to you"

"well... talk"

" really Scarlett, I'm not going to talk to you through the door" he stated banging on the door again

"there is nothing I have to say to you so go away"

" I'm not leaving here till you let me in" he yelled, this time his voice was filled with anger

" Avery go home, you're drunk!"

"Scarlett I swear to God if you don't open that door..." he began to say before a familiar voice interrupted

" What's going on here?" Gunnar asked

" Oh great! look Scarlett your little lap dog is here"

Scarlett moved to the window to see what was going on outside. To her surprise Gunnar was there.

"I think Scarlett told you to go away" Gunnar sternly stated

Rolling his eyes at the tall boy with the dark brown hair Avery began to bang on the door again. Begging and whining for Scarlett to let him in.

"Avery please go away"

"Quit being a bitch and let me in" Avery huffed before being spun around by Gunnar. Before he could stop spinning he felt hot flesh meet his eye socket, knocking him on his back.

"oh my gosh Avery are you okay" Scarlett asked as she rushed out the door and knelt down beside him.

"Gunnar, you didn't have to do that"

" He called you a bitch Scarlett. How can you just let him talk to you like that?"

"Gunnar he's obviously drunk"

" That's no excuse to talk that way to a lady"

Scarlett looked up at him and he could see the pain he had caused in her face.

"help me get him in the house" she said

Gunnar helped Avery to one of the couches where he laid down. Scarlett returned from the hallway with a blanket to cover up the boy who was on the verge of passing out.

"Are you going to let him stay here tonight?" Gunnar asked

" He's obviously too drunk to go anywhere and now that he might have a possible concussion from your right hook someone has watch him" Scarlett huffed

"Well I'm not leaving you alone here with him"

"fine, I'll get you a blanket, you can sleep on the other sofa" she handed him a blanket " I think I better go to bed before tonight gets any stranger"

he nodded "goodnight Scarlett"

"Gunnar can I ask you a question" she stopped walking and turned to face him "What made you decide to come back over here tonight?"

"this" his mouth swept down over hers. For a moment she was surprised, but then excitement set in. He pulled her body toward his chest deepening the kiss. Slowly he lead her toward her bedroom door, their lips still locked until Scarlett felt the cold wall behind her. She giggled realizing that Gunnar he walked her into a wall.

"Sorry" he said pressing his forehead to hers. Both of them were breathing hard. Before Gunnar could steal another kiss they heard rustling both of them turned around to see Avery darting for the bathroom followed by the faint sounds of heaving. Gunnar rolled his eyes knowing that what was about to happen had just be stopped dead in its tracks.

" I had better go check on him" Scarlett whispered as she ducked under Gunnar's arm.

After a few minutes of rubbing Avery's he was finally stable enough to head back to the couch. Scarlett followed her ex boyfriend back to the living room where she found a note on the coffee table.

"to be continued..." - Gunnar

smiling she folded the note up and placed it in her pocket.

"to be continued" she whispered.

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Well, I hope y'all liked the chapter... I promise it's gonna get good. I won't tease you all with the will they or won't they for much longer! Oh and thanks everyone for the great reviews, keep em coming!

Much love - Kj


	4. Will You Be There In the Morning?

A/n: first let me start out by saying how sorry I am for not being as attentive to this story as I should be. I got a little bogged down with the semester and it coming to an end. I am so grateful you, all of my fans and everyone who has taken time out of their lives to read my story. I love all the reviews I have been receiving and I can't tell you how much they mean to me! This chapter is dedicated to all my loyal fans. I really can't believe I haven't updated in 25 days! Same on me! LOL... anyway I digress... here is chapter 4 enjoy!

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**Chapter 4: Will You Be There In The Morning?**

The sunlight from the window danced across her face as the smell of bacon filled the air. Scarlett plopped over onto her stomach smothering her face into her pillow. She didn't want to get out of bed, however the smell of bacon intrigued her. Was Avery making breakfast in her kitchen? She pulled her head off the pillow just enough to catch a glance of the alarm clock on her nightstand. 10:12 it blinked. She was about to bury her head again and try to ignore whatever was going on outside her bedroom walls when she noticed the note Gunnar had left for her the night before. Sitting up she snatched the note gently tracing the letters.

"to be continued" she whispered. realizing that she had better get up and investigate the smell of breakfast in her apartment. She wrapped her robe around her body and made her way to the kitchen.

"Avery! What are you doing in my kitchen"she asked. The blonde haired boy turned from the skillet of sizzling bacon to see Scarlett standing in the doorway.

"good morning!" he said, placing a kiss on her cheek

"what are you doing?"

"what does it look like? im making you breakfast" he said placing a plate on the table and ushering Scarlett to take a seat

"Avery this was a nice gesture and all but, I think you should leave"

"seriously Scarlett, I made you breakfast and you aren't even going to hear me out?" he said harshly

" I think I have heard and seen enough"

"but I miss you so much! I just want to come back home" Avery started to whine.

" Avery, you cheated on me! There is nothing that you can do to undo that! I thought I was enough for you, but obviously I wasn't" Scarlett huffed slamming the plateful of food in the since shattering the dish.

" That wasn't my fault! She came on to me! What was I supposed to do?"

"you were supposed to walk away, come home to your girlfriend of 6 years. That's what you were supposed to do"

" I made a mistake, I'm here now apologizing doesn't that count for something?"

"you can't just make me breakfast and expect me to forgive you and let you move back in. I've moved on"

"Moved on? With who, your singing partner?"

" well... umm..."

"Are you serious Scarlett?" he interjected

"Yes, as a matter of fact I am! Gunnar is twice the man you will ever be" She screeched

"We'll see how long that lasts" Avery huffed grabbing his coat off the couch and slamming the front door behind him.

Scarlett hurried to the door quickly locking it. She slumped down to the floor; tears were now streaming from her eyes. She wondered what she had done to deserve all this pain. She sat there for a good long time before convincing herself to get up; as she was standing she placed her hand in the pocket of her robe. She was taken aback by the rough texture of paper, realizing it was the note that Gunnar had left her the night before she smiled. There was still something and someone worth smiling for.

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sorry this chapter is so short... I don't really know where I want this story to go so it's taking me a lot longer. If anyone has any ideas of what they would like to happen let me know... I just might "borrow" your idea!

Much love KJ


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